While the Bangalore Lit Fest 2015 has had its share of controversies, the community-funded festival still remains one of the most awaited events of the year in the city. The fourth edition of the Bangalore Literature Festival {BLF 2015} is just around the corner. With its change of location, the shortened two-day format and an exciting, new literary award {the Atta Galatta-BLF Book Prize Award}, there seems to be a lot of surprises in store. While it is not an easy task to pick the best out of the 30+ sessions {happening across two stages}, we have gone ahead and done just that. Here’s our pick of eight sessions you need to look out for at this year’s BLF.

Day 1 – Saturday, December 5

The New Age Romantics

Why not start with some love? Catch three romantic novelists – Ravinder Singh {author of I Too Had a Love Story, Can Love Happen Twice? and Like It Happened Yesterday}, Durjoy Dutta {author of Of Course I Love You! andNow That You’re Rich!, among others} and Preeti Shenoy {known for her book Life Is What You Make It, among others} – in conversation with popular city-based author, Nandita Bose {who wrote Tread Softly}.

When: 12.30pm-1.25pm

Sirigannada- Hindhe, Indhu, Mundhe; Kannada past, present and future

Hampa Nagarajaiah {Kannada scholar popularly known by his pen name Hampana}, his wife, Kamala Hampana {veteran litterateur}, Chandrashekhara Kambara {Kannada poet, playwright, folklorist and film director} and Narahalli Balasubrahmanya {critic and executive committee member of the Sahitya Akademi} engage in a conversation about Kannada and its journey so far.

When: 1.30pm-2.25pm

Cracking the Bollywood code

This one promises to be a lot of fun, bringing together popular Bollywood actor, Ayushmann Khurrana and his wife Tahira Kashyap who co-authored his autobiographical work, Cracking The Code: My Journey in Bollywood. We’re hoping to hear stories about their experience writing together as well as tidbits about B-town from the Vicky Donor star.

When: 3.30pm-4.25pm

It’s an Ad, Ad, Ad, Ad World

Award-winning adman and now author, Piyush Pandey will be in conversation with Ganga Ganapathi {Vice President and Head of Office, Bengaluru, Soho Square} about the world of advertising.

When: 4.30pm-5.25pm

Eight Threats to Freedom of Expression

Being a relevant topic now, more than ever, Ramachandra Guha {historian and writer} talks about the eight major threats to freedom of expression faced in the country today.

When: 5.30pm-6.30pm

Day 2 – Sunday, December 6

Creating your protagonist – the agony and ecstasy

Be it the three-year-old girl in Mona Verma’s God is a River: A Story of Faith or Rapa, the Tamil Brahmin woman in Poile Sengupta’s Inga, the power of a good novel seems to lie in its protagonist. In this session, let authors, Mona Verma, Shoba Narayan, Manjiri Prabhu, Poile Sengupta and Manju Jaidka take you through their experiences and observations on developing a protagonist.

When: 2pm-2.55pm

Out, damned spot!: on Crime Fiction

If you’re a fan of whodunits, this one is for you. Head to this session, featuring crime fiction writers Zac O’Yeah {who introduced us to local detective, Hari Majestic, in his novels}, Manjiri Prabhu, Manju Jaidka {professor and writer} and Sharath Komarraju along with Mona Verma.